1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a patient transport apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Over the last thirteen years, healthcare providers have witnessed marked change in patient numbers as well as patient needs. Thirteen years ago, a patient weighing 400 pounds or more was a rarity. These patients were extraordinary cases and not an everyday assignment. Today, dealing with patients weighing 400 pounds or more is a daily way of life. At any given time, any healthcare facility is likely to have admitted at least one patient who weighs 600 pounds or more. Although healthcare providers work to provide services to heavier patients by purchasing new equipment and educating staff members; however, the reality remains that it has become increasingly difficult to simply convey patients.
While healthcare providers and healthcare equipment vendors have attempted to address this growing challenge, the currently available solutions appear insufficient when looking at the growing number of staff injuries and lost work time that is associated with conveying patients. Moving heavier patients is one significant contributor to work related injuries. A staff member may be off the schedule for weeks and even months due to such injuries. In addition to the risk to the staff members, there are concerns on the patient side as well.
A patient expects a healthcare provider to meet the patient's healthcare needs. This expectation is independent of the patient's weight. When a patient weighing 150 pounds falls down, it is expected that the healthcare provider will help them up. That same expectation is held by a patient weighing 600 pounds or more. Like the staff member, the patient also runs a risk of injury during transport as a result of being lifted, pulled, pushed, slid from, or transferred into, out of, or between conveyances. While dealing with the very real, difficult, and unfortunate problem of transporting heavier patients, the patient's dignity is often compromised. It is difficult for patients to maintain dignity when ten men are called to move them. It is not uncommon for patients apologize for being so large and so much trouble. One's dignity should not be overlooked, regardless of the weight of the patient.
One of the most problematic areas in patient transport is the loading and unloading of a patient from a vehicle. Patients arriving at a healthcare facility are often transferred from an automobile to a wheelchair so that they may be conveyed to the Emergency Department. The staff member faced with assisting a patient who weighs many times more than the staff member, and who can offer little or no help in exiting the vehicle, gains a completely new appreciation for the many phases of patient conveyance. The confines of the automobile, the obstruction of the door, and the low seat height make patient assistance a difficult task. Conditions such as these are especially likely to result in embarrassment or injury. For example, it is not uncommon to inadvertently set the patient on the ground during this type of transfer, which at best only diminishes the dignity of the patient, and embarrasses the staff member. With luck, no one is injured during this process.